Shipyard Operator News

Nakilat, in association with Qatari LNG producers Qatargas and RasGas Company Limited and engine manufacturer MAN Diesel & Turbo, recently celebrated the success of the ME-GI project involving the retrofit of chartered Q-Max vessel, Rasheeda, with a gas-burning M-Type Electronically Controlled – Gas Injection (ME-GI) System, which has now been successfully commissioned. The Qatari-owned Q-Max vessel is the world’s first low-speed marine diesel engine to be converted to use LNG as a fuel. The retrofit modification meets the current known and future stated global emissions regulations. Nakilat’s Rasheeda built in 2010 is a 266,000 m3 LNG carrier with two MAN B&W S70ME-C HFO-burning engines, which have been converted to the dual-fuel ME-GI concept.

Liverpool (Birkenhead) UK-based maritime sector contractor MPE Interiors says it has completed an outfitting contract for North East shipyard operator UK Docks, aboard the offshore support vessel 'Ocean Tay'. MPE carried out the refurbishment works at  Wear Dock & Engineering in Sunderland as part of a conversion to the Ocean Tay, a 63-m (207-ft) Class A Emergency Response and Rescue Vessel (ERRV), operated by Atlantic Offshore Rescue Ltd. MPE director Cliff Grainger said it delivered a broad range of services on the conversion: "We were delighted to assist UK docks on this conversion. The scope of work included outfitting of a new survivor area…

Nakilat, Qatargas and RasGas Company Limited will convert a Q-Max vessel as a pilot project making it capable of running on LNG and reducing the ship’s exhaust gas and greenhouse gas emissions. Qatari shipping company Nakilat and Qatari LNG producers Qatargas and RasGas Company Limited have agreed with engine manufacturer MAN Diesel and Turbo to convert a Q-Max vessel to use LNG as an alternative to heavy fuel oil in the main engines. The proactive initiative reinforces Qatar’s commitment toward the environment with plans to convert an existing low-speed diesel LNG carrier to use LNG as fuel thereby reducing the ship’s exhaust gas emissions.

Dubai's shipyard operator, Drydocks World has filed a claim with a special tribunal set up in the Emirate to allow restructuring after it failed to secure the backing of all its creditors. Drydocks World's debt is around US$2.2 billion. “We take this step to protect the interests of the vast majority of the group's syndicated lenders, the clients, suppliers and wider stakeholders who continue to support the business throughout its restructuring,” said Drydocks World chairman Khamis Juma Buamim.

A new maintenance company with no shipyard experience takes a struggling repair yard, converted from an old cannery, and transforms it into a success story. Alaska Ship & Drydock (ASD) is on its way to achieving its vision of becoming the maritime support center for the North Pacific and Arctic Oceans. The yard’s story is tied to the economic development in Southeast Alaska and its turning point came with the construction of the MV Susitna, the first ice strengthened twin hull ferry, commissioned by the Office of Naval Research.

Manitowoc Co. Inc. reportedly signed an agreement to buy private shipyard operator Marinette Marine Corp. for about $48 million cash. The deal is expected to add to about 5 to 10 cents a share to 2001 earnings, said chief financial officer Glen Tellock. The final price will be subject to closing balance sheet adjustments. The transaction, expected to close within 30 days pending regulatory approvals, will be financed with an existing credit facility. "Marinette Marine is one of the most efficient builders of mid-sized commercial, research, and military vessels in the country and will be a key strategic fit with the industry-leading inspection…

Shares of Cosco Corp. Singapore, a shipping company that owns a shipyard in China, rebounded after announcing it secured an order to build 29 bulk carriers worth $1.34b. The news has provided the stock a much needed shot in the arm as investors have been selling the stock in the last two days on concerns its shareholder, shipyard operator SembCorp Marine Ltd., may sell more shares in the company. SembCorp Marine said it had sold 39 million Cosco shares, taking its holding to 111.4 million shares. The latest orders put Cosco's current order book at $6.4b, $6.2b of which were secured this year, according to Kim Eng Securities. The brokerage believes Cosco could secure another $900m in orders based on existing options with customers.

Diversified SembCorp Industries Ltd., fresh from sales of key non-core assets, is reportedly hunting for foreign partners in its bid to become a global contender in its core businesses. Already Asia's largest shipyard operator, SembCorp is confident about meeting its internal target of not less than 20 percent growth in net profit per annum and has set its sights beyond Asia.

Diversified SembCorp Industries Ltd., fresh from sales of key non-core assets, is hunting for foreign partners in its bid to become a global contender in its core businesses, President Wong Kok Siew said. Already Asia's largest shipyard operator, SembCorp is confident about meeting its internal target of not less than 20 percent growth in net profit per annum and has set its sights beyond Asia. "With the major divestments of non-core over, our game plan is simple -- to grow the group as we move forward," Wong, who is also the group's chief executive, said. The year-old entity of government-owned Singapore Technologies Industrial Corp and Sembawang Corp has made estimated proceeds of $340.5 million from its non-core asset sales so far this year.

Shipyard operator SembCorp Marine Ltd. posted a 9.6 percent rise in 1999 net profit to $46.5 million and expects to maintain profitability this year. SembCorp, which owns Southeast Asia’s largest shipyard of 1.8 million dwt capacity, also unveiled that it has budgeted $50 million to buy a major shipyard in China and $10 million for a venture in Brazil to sharpen its competitive edge.